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Analysis
Russia's traditional view of the outside world is colored by a deep sense of insecurity and
paranoia. This is best exemplified by the events in Ukraine, where the Kremlin acted to
preserve its traditional geographic bulwark against the West. This pattern of protectionism is
also apparent in Moscow's current understanding and approach to the situation in the Arctic. Of
the eight countries of the Arctic Council, five are members of NATO, fueling Russia's suspicion
that opposing forces are massing against it. Although friction with Kiev and the West has
overshadowed Russia's military build-up in the Arctic, Moscow's long-term ambitions for the
region are making other Arctic countries nervous, Norway in particular.
Russia is interested in the Arctic for a number of reasons, though natural resources and pure
geopolitical imperatives are the major driving forces behind Moscow's thinking. The Arctic
contains an estimated 30 percent of the world's undiscovered natural gas and 13 percent of its
undiscovered oil reserves, regarded by Moscow as important sources of foreign
investment that are critical to the country's economic development. The Northern Sea Route
from East Asia to Europe via the Arctic Ocean provides another economic opportunity for
developing infrastructure in northern Russia.
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These resources and transit lanes, however, are also attractive to other Arctic countries,
potentially turning the region into a political battleground. The U.N. Convention on the Law of
the Sea regulates ownership of the Arctic, allowing for exclusive economic zones stretching
200 miles from land and even further if undersea resources sit on a continental shelf.
Inhospitable conditions made previous boundary disputes futile, so the Arctic interior remains
open to territorial claims and disputes. The interest expressed by other countries feeds Russia's
determination to make its role as a central Arctic nation clear by any means possible, including
the use of military pressure.
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on the archipelago of Novaya Zemlya is being renovated to accommodate modern and next
generation fighter aircraft in addition to advanced S400 air defense systems. Part of the
Northern Fleet will also be based on the island chain, which is ideally positioned for operations
in the Arctic region. The Northern Fleet represents two-thirds of the entire Russian Navy, which
is the only navy in the world to operate nuclear-powered icebreaker ships. In addition, Moscow
announced the formation of a new 6,000-soldier military group in the far north consisting of
two motorized infantry brigades located in the Murmansk area and the Yamal-Nenets
autonomous region. Radar and ground guidance systems are also planned for Franz Josef Land,
Wrangel Island and Cape Schmidt. The Federal Security Service plans to increase the number
of border guards on Russia's northern perimeter as well.
The recent Vostok 2014 full-scale military exercise the biggest since the collapse of the
Soviet Union was a revealing indication of Russia's intentions in the Arctic. Russian troops,
sailors and airmen carried out combat training missions in the region, prominently deploying
Pantsir-S (air defense) and Iskander-M (theater ballistic missile) weapon systems, among
others. Such activities inevitably evoke the atmosphere of the Cold War, when the region was
the focus of U.S. and NATO attention. Furthermore, Russia's Northern Fleet announced that its
Independent Marine Infantry Brigade will undergo intensive training in the Arctic region
throughout 2015.
The Kremlin reiterated its intention to field a formidable combined arms force to protect its
political and economic interests in the Arctic by 2020. Going into 2015, it is estimated that the
Russian armed forces have around 56 military aircraft and 122 helicopters in the Arctic region.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu stated that 14 military airfields on Russia's Arctic
seaboard would be operational by the end of the year. The Ministry of Defense also said some
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that Oslo did not hold any military exercises near its border with the Soviet Union during the
Cold War. This reticence continued after the fall of the Iron Curtain, yet the Norwegian
government recently announced its intent to conduct large-scale drills in Finnmark a territory
on the Russia-Norway border in March 2015. The proposed maneuvers will be the country's
largest military exercises since 1967. There is a growing recognition in Moscow that Norway's
policy toward Russia is going through a major shift as a direct reaction to Moscow's push to
militarize the Arctic region.
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